The Aphrodite Discovery
by Winekita
Summary: The Aphrodite Cabin is determined to set Tulio Valdez up with a date. Trouble is, Tulio doesn't seem too attracted to any of the girls he's set up with. But Mark Grace—the current head counselor for Cabin Ten—sees this as more of a challenge…and a hint.
1. Let's Play

**_Hee...After this certain poll on my other story, _The Keys_, I had a really random idea. Then this happened. :D_**

**_Our little Tulio needs some help in the romance department...or so Cabin Ten thinks. This story takes place before _The Keys_ so don't be expecting any spoilers about that story here :P_**

**_I don't know how long this bad boy will be, but it shouldn't be that big._**

**_I need to stop getting new story ideas and work on my bigger ones...but I really love this idea :3 It will be about the legacies, so don't be expecting much Seven interference._**

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize as canon. And yes, Chel is the same one from the Road to El Daycare chapter in my story Adventures in Parenting. Miguel might make an appearance, too, but that's still uncertain._  
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><p><strong><em>The Aphrodite Discovery<em>**

**_One: Let's Play_**

_~A month before the events in **The Keys**~_

"So, who's next on the matchmaking list?"

Mark Grace rolled his eyes. He was the current head of the Aphrodite Cabin, and as such made rules on how the cabin behaved when it came to other campers' relationships. He allowed his uncles and aunts (though he still called them siblings) to play 'matchmaker' as long as the matches were appropriate and they didn't try to break them up right after.

That didn't mean Mark actually participated in the game. He was a single camper, and as such felt it would be hypocritical of him to set others up when he didn't have someone to call his own.

His cousin, another legacy named Chel, thought carefully at the question that had been directed at her—the head matchmaker. The other Aphrodite cabin mates surrounded her, desperately wanting to know who was next on the list.

Chel's brown eyes flashed. She snapped as if a light bulb had gone off in her head. "I got it! We haven't done Hephaestus in a while, right?"

The others nodded. Mark huffed in annoyance and went back to reading his magazine on the bed.

"Well then, I know the _perfect_ guy! He'll be a bit of a challenge, since he doesn't like coming out a lot, but maybe we can change that."

"Who is it?" one of the girls asked. "We need a challenge!"

"Tulio Valdez."

Mark's magazine dropped onto his chest. _She can't be serious_, he thought. _There's no way Tulio will go for a match-up._

Apparently his siblings were thinking along the same lines. "Him?" sputtered a boy. "You want to match _him_ up with someone?"

Chel shrugged. "You guys said you wanted a challenge, and Tulio is a pretty big one."

"But he's so…"

"…so _Leo_-like."

Mark raised an eyebrow. _Leo-like? In looks maybe. In hobby-preferences, maybe. But in attitude? They're nothing alike. Tulio can't crack a cheesy joke to save his life! No, Leo didn't rub off on Tulio when it came to personality, that's for sure!_

"Exactly why he's a challenge!" Chel waved her hands around excitedly. "Tulio Valdez is always looking lonely when he shows up for camp events. He needs a lady in his life! All agreed?"

The matchmakers all nodded, some of them looking rather nervous.

One actually spoke up, "What if Esperanza catches on to the match and doesn't want us interfering?"

_That_ was the main reason people didn't go near Tulio. To be friends with Tulio, you had to be friends with his twin sister Esperanza. If Tulio didn't like you (which was hard, since Tulio was so mellow to begin with) then Espie didn't like you. And if Espie didn't like you, you got burned—_literally_.

And if Espie didn't like someone getting too close to her twin? Well then, that someone better step back a few hundred miles.

There had only been one case in the entire world where someone got too close to Tulio. Her name had been Maria, a daughter of Bacchus. It had been a few years ago; Maria was on CHB Leave after earning the right in the Legion for the first time. She assessed that she liked Tulio right from the get-go and started clinging to him. She twirled her fingers through his curly hair, tried intertwining her fingers with his, laughed at everything he said (funny or not), and flat-out flirted with him. It was pretty awful to watch. Tulio didn't show any signs of recognizing the come-ons. Either he was oblivious or he just didn't care.

But Esperanza cared. She had been downright _pissed_ that someone was snuggling up to Tulio in that way so blatantly.

One day, when Maria was somehow separated from the internal fire user, Espie cornered her and confronted the Roman about it. Maria must have said the wrong thing, because she had ended up in a full body cast with third-degree burns riddled all over her body. The Romans thankfully didn't press charges since Maria was a wild flirt anyway, but Chiron had ordered Espie to not enter camp for the rest of the summer. Needless to say, it was a good thing the Valdez household was fireproof.

So, because of that incident, people steered clear of Tulio—especially girls that weren't already friends or Hephaestus siblings.

"As long as our matches don't over-flirt with him, I don't think Espie will be a problem," Chel concluded. "And if Espie brings it up, then I'll…" she gulped. "I'll handle her."

Mark snorted.

Chel glared at him. "Got something to say, counselor?"

Mark raised an eyebrow. "I was just thinking that you'd probably handle Espie in the same way a goldfish would handle a cat."

"Your point being?"

"She'd eat you."

Other people snickered. Chel narrowed her eyes at Mark. "Then how would you handle her, O Wise One?"

He shrugged. "How would I handle her anger at someone matching up her brother? Simple: I wouldn't try matching her brother up with someone."

Chel rolled her eyes and turned away. "Your opinion has been noted, dear cousin, but we all think it's time for Tulio to get on his own feet and stop relying on Espie. Now, anyone got any suggestions on the perfect girl for Tulio?"

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><p><em><strong>AN: Heh, over-protective Espie. So, let the game for Tulio's love begin!**_


	2. Round One

**_Expect these chapters to be rather short. Sorry about that, but it's unfortunately true :(_**

**_Anyway, enjoy!_**

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize as canon. Kids/Teens are mine._**

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><p><strong>Round One<strong>

A few days later, Mark saw that a plan had been set into motion. Chel had gotten various girls together and probed them about their feelings for Tulio. Several admitted that they liked him. Most said he was weird. When asked about if they would consider going out with him, every single one of them had said, "If Espie's okay with it…"

In the end, two girls volunteered because they thought Espie would be okay with them, and two got voluntold by Chel because they were good candidates.

Mark didn't like that Chel was forcing those girls, but he did notice both of the voluntold girls could be Tulio's type. They were just afraid of Espie. Well, Chel didn't _force_. If she forced someone to do something against their will Mark would disband the matchmakers. Chel was okay with that. She couldn't charmspeak like him and had no desire to force false love. She just wanted people to be happy with each other.

_Well, I guess Tulio deserves to be happy with someone,_ Mark conceded. _Hey, if Leo of all people can find love (with a former Titan no less) then I guess Tulio can do it…And maybe one day, Espie could…_

Mark should his head. His grandmother was putting thoughts into his head. He was sometimes susceptible to crushing on random girls from time to time. Stupid love goddess curse, was what it was…

Anyway, everyone was eating dinner in the dining pavilion when Try #1 happened.

A daughter of Demeter, Stacy Winchester, was the first on the list to try and grab Tulio's attention. She seemed to have a small crush on him already, liking his sensitivity and soft nature—something that balanced out his fiery powers (and sometimes his sister's).

She gracefully got up from her table and nonchalantly walked to the Hephaestus table. She absentmindedly fixed her hair as she walked.

"H-Hi Tulio," Stacy said quietly as she reached the table.

Tulio turned around and smiled sweetly. "Hi, Stacy."

She gulped. "Listen, I was just wondering…do you wanna maybe hang out after dinner? Like, maybe down by the beach or maybe just a walk in the woods?"

Tulio tilted his head. "Sure, I guess. Yeah, we can hang out."

Stacy was just about to squeal in delight. But then Tulio continued.

"Espie can come, too, right?"

Stacy glanced at the female fire user. She had her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Well…" Stacy swallowed, trying to keep it cool. "I was kinda hoping it could just be…the two of us?"

Tulio frowned. "Then I guess we can't hang out."

Stacy backed away slowly, feeling her heart shatter at Tulio's obliviousness. She mentally promised to never ask him out again.

Mark watched the scene curiously. _Maybe he didn't understand the implications behind her asking him to hang out…? Is he that blind that he couldn't see Stacy kinda liked him?_

Mark mulled over that for the rest of dinner. And apparently so did Chel.

**ROUND ONE**

**STATUS: FAIL**

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><p><em><strong>AN: Well, looks like that didn't work...But, it's only the first round! Maybe Tulio will get the hint on the next try?**_


	3. Round Two

**_Sorry for the wait. Job. Other stories. Life. Other lame excuse._**

**_Have fun :D_**

_**I own nothing you recognize as canon. Kids/teens (Sammy and Leo excluded) are mine.**_

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><p><strong>Round Two<strong>

The next attempt wasn't really Tulio's fault. It was technically his pet dragon Icarus's fault.

Chel leaped behind a tree as Tulio opened the door to Bunker 9. He left it open in case his non-fire user 'siblings' or any of his friends wished to enter.

Chel followed him inside slowly.

She didn't really pay attention to anything. She saw Tulio hop onto a ladder and disappear into the hull of a beat-up-looking warship.

_Perfect_, she thought. _Now, where to put this?_

In her hand was a love letter from one of the voluntold candidates, Fallon Grange, daughter of Iris. She didn't actually write the letter. One of Chel's siblings did, since Fallon was too chicken to do it herself.

If all went well, Tulio would go up to Fallon about the letter.

She sought out a nice obvious place to set the letter down.

Next to the ladder was a three-legged table. _Awesome!_

She placed the letter on top of the table and ran out of the Bunker to get to archery practice before she was late and Mark gave her extra chores.

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><p>Of course, Chel—being a legacy of Aphrodite—didn't really know that in a Haphaestian environment, three-legged tables are more than just for show.<p>

This table had been Tulio's science project for his fifth grade science fair. Leo was so proud. Where he had made a steam-powered chicken-chucker during his fifth grade science fair, Tulio had made Buffette, the _female_ walking table. Well, she was supposed to be female. Buford seemed to like her like that and the mechanical feeling had been reciprocated. Thankfully, there was no way for Buffette to reproduce. The Hephaestus cabin had enough worries with Buford the wonder table and Buffette running around the Bunker.

Unfortunately, Buffette did _not_ like having things placed on her.

As soon as Chel left, Buffette woke up and started running around frantically, trying to buck off the enveloped love letter.

Icarus, the new dragon figurehead of the _Argo II_, was currently 'snoozing' (which meant was on sleep mode from lack of use) on the ground. Tulio had put him down there to work on some connectivity issues between Icarus and the engine.

Icarus was more of a neck and head combo at the moment, so he 'stood' as tall as Frank while on the ground.

Buffette knocked into Icarus, effectively waking him up. Icarus locked his sapphire eyes onto Buffette and snapped at her. Icarus, for some reason, did _not_ like Buffette. He liked Buford just fine. Just not Buffette.

Buffette screeched like a tea kettle and ducked immediately. The letter finally fluttered up off of the table. Icarus snapped the letter up.

Buffette clicked and steamed. Icarus growled, the letter still in his mouth.

"What are you two doing?"

Tulio was leaning on the rail of the _Argo II_, looking annoyed. "Stop bothering Icarus, Buffette!"

The table scampered off.

Tulio looked at Icarus. "What's that in your mouth?"

Icarus sucked up the letter. He growled and shook his head playfully like a dog.

"No!" Tulio flew down the ladder and went up to the dragon head. "Bad dragon! Drop it!"

Icarus raised his head and whirred his teeth. Bits of the letter flew down into Tulio's face.

"Give it here!"

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><p>Mark tapped his foot. Chel had been late to archery practice, so he was making her stay late to make up the time. She, like most Aphrodite Cabin members, was horrid at this. He wouldn't let her go until she at least <em>hit<em> the target.

"This is what practice is for," he scolded.

"Apollo children are better suited for this," Chel snapped. "Besides, I need to see if my plan worked!"

"Which one?"

She told him about the 'love letter' and where she had placed it.

Mark rolled his eyes. "I highly doubt…"

"Have either of you seen an Apollo camper around?"

Both Aphrodite legacies turned. Tulio was there, cradling a bleeding arm.

Mark steadied the demititan. "What happened to you?"

Tulio shook his head. "Icarus was playing with some sort of paper. I don't know what it was. He ripped it to shreds before I could see it."

Mark saw the look of quick anger that flashed across Chel's face. He snickered at her bad luck, but then turned his attention back to Tulio.

"What happened to your arm, though?"

The legacy of Hephaestus grinned, despite the situation. "_Apparently_, you're not supposed to stick your bare arm inside a bronze dragon's rotating-teeth-filled mouth…"

**ROUND TWO**

**STATUS: FAIL**

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><p><em><strong>AN: Psh, who would've thought?**_

_**Look! I made a Buffette! :P Don't know why Icarus doesn't like her. Maybe he's just a hormonal teenager lol**_


	4. Round Three

_**No excuses for why this is so late. These are supposed to be short chapters, but I've no idea what took me so long in writing this one. Maybe it was The Imp Within, the Keys, all the other one-shots, etc that kept distracting me...**_

_**I own nothing you recognize as canon.**_

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><p><strong>Round Three<strong>

Mark actually watched the next attempt. He had sworn to himself that if this one failed, he'd try to do this his own way—or at least see what was wrong with Chel's choices.

The next attempt was Chel setting up a blind picnic date. She had sent out anonymous letters for the couple to show up by the lake at a specific time. Tulio would be arriving at the picnic first, and then the next match candidate would show up and they'd have a lovely time.

"I highly doubt this is going to work," Mark protested.

"Shush," Chel hissed as they crouched behind the tree nearest the picnic. "It worked for Dave and Amber."

"Both of them had a crush on each other. This, right here, involves a one-sided crush on a solitary guy who doesn't do much in terms of 'human' interaction."

Chel glared at him. "I know what I'm doing."

"Apparently not, judging by your record."

"Third time's the charm. Now quiet, someone's coming!"

Mark ducked a bit.

"…it _did_ say somewhere around here."

That was Tulio, Mark guessed. So far, Chel's plan was working. At least the demititan had _gotten_ the letter this time.

Then it suddenly went wrong.

"Why would anyone send you a letter to a random spot next to the lake?"

Chel's jaw dropped as Tulio rounded a corner and came into view—with Espie following close behind.

"I didn't think of that," she admitted.

Mark almost face-palmed. "You happened to forget the teeny weeny detail of Espie following Tulio everywhere?" he hissed.

Chel gave him a killer glare.

"Aw, cool! Free dinner," Espie exclaimed.

She began feasting on the ham in one of the wicker baskets. Tulio grinned and chowed down on a burger.

Mark wanted to laugh so badly.

Chel looked absolutely horrified.

Just as Tulio began to eat some grapes, the candidate who was supposed to meet the legacy here rounded the opposite corner. She froze when she saw the twins. Her gaze lingered on Esperanza and she began to sweat a little.

Her face reddened in embarrassment and the girl fled the scene before either of the demititans knew she had been there.

Espie burped. "This is cool. To whoever made this picnic, kudos to them!"

Chel fumed and stormed off. Mark followed, shaking his head. He grabbed her shoulder to get her attention. The legacy of Aphrodite glared at him.

"How about I give this a try?" Mark said.

"Oh, _now_ you take an interest?"

Mark smirked. "Whatever. Are you willing to let me take the lead this time?"

Chel shifted on her feet. "What would you have in mind?"

**ROUND THREE**

**STATUS: FAIL**

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><p><em><strong>AN: Ooh, what could Mark be planning for our young Tulio? Stay tuned!**_


	5. Round Four

_**Whomp.**_

_**Don't mind me.**_

_**Just updating this lovely chapter. I want to finish this story before the final Keys chapter, just so I don't spoil who Tulio's love will be.**_

_**I own nothing you recognize as canon.**_

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><p><strong>Round Four<strong>

Tulio was tinkering with something inside Buffette when Mark burst into the Bunker.

"Mark?" Tulio asked, removing his goggles. "What are you—?"

Mark grabbed the legacy of Hephaestus and pulled him to his feet. He then forcefully dragged the older teen outside towards camp.

"It's time to settle something," Mark explained. "I know this might be a little awkward, but I've got no choice."

Tulio blushed. "Excuse me?"

Mark dragged him into camp. Chel was waiting, her arms crossed. "Oh good, you found him."

Tulio cocked an eyebrow.

The two legacies of Aphrodite wiped a bit of dirt and grime off of the Latino. It only made him slightly presentable, but better than a minute before. Chel brushed some of his curls out of his eyes.

"Before you ask," she said, "know that this idea was Mark's."

Mark rolled his eyes. "Like the last three weren't yours?"

"Last three?" Tulio stammered. "What do you mean—?"

"Shut up," Chel said. "And pay attention."

She pushed Tulio forward. He stumbled a bit before realizing that someone else was standing in front of him.

It was a daughter of Ares, Hannah. She was pretty brave, and by Mark's calculations, brave enough to stand up to Espie should this work out.

Hannah swiped a brown lock out of her face and blushed. She was a nice girl, considering her parentage, so her falling for Tulio seemed appropriate. Mark had asked for her to do this while Espie wasn't with Tulio. The female demititan was currently at archery practice with the Apollo children. Perfect.

"Tulio," the daughter of Ares said. "I want to say something to you."

The legacy cocked an eyebrow and straightened a little. "Okay?"

Hannah cleared her throat. "I just want to say that I love how dedicated you are to your work. I love how modest and shy you are, and that you're so close to your sister and friends. You're funny, too.

"What I'm trying to say is that I like you," she blurted. "So will you go out with me?"

Tulio blinked and blushed. "Uh…well…"

"Please?" Hannah cried. "I really want to make this work!"

Tulio scratched his neck. "I'm sorry, but…no…"

Hannah sighed sadly. "Fine," she conceded. "Is it something to do with me? Did I do something?"

"No!" Tulio raised his hands in surrender. "It's nothing like that…It's just…I already like someone else…"

Chel pushed Hannah away. "_You do_!?" she cried. "Why didn't you say so? Who is it? Why haven't you shown _any_ signs?"

Tulio trembled and backed away. He glanced around. Mark realized he was waiting for Espie to save him.

The legacy of Jupiter blocked Chel from Tulio. "Enough, Chel. Just stop."

Chel fumed. "This is _personal_, now! That boy has shrugged off every girl we've thrown at him, and it was because he likes someone else! I _need_ to know this info!"

Mark shook his head and led Tulio away. "I'm sorry. I didn't know she'd react like that."

"Hannah or Chel?"

"Chel. Hannah seemed to take it okay."

Tulio sighed. "Listen, I know you Aphrodite Cabin people mean well, but…could you butt out?"

"Too shy to talk to your crush?" Mark guessed.

"Something like that."

"Well," Mark tried, "how about you tell me what your type is? What do they look like? What do they like?"

Tulio blushed. "You won't tell, will you?"

"Promise."

Tulio sighed. "'Kay…they have blonde hair."

"Go on," Mark urged.

"Green eyes."

"Do tell." Now Mark had an idea.

"Good with horses…"

Mark was almost certain he knew who this was. He would confront her later about it.

"And…?"

"And…" Tulio blushed. "We've been friends since we were really little, but I don't know if they'll like me…the same way."

Mark clapped his hand on the older teen's shoulder. "You'll be fine, dude. Take a little initiative and—"

Espie suddenly appeared out of nowhere and grabbed Mark by the hood of his jacket.

"Come with me," she ordered him. "_Now_. Tulio, go back to the Bunker. I'll talk to you in a minute."

Mark had no choice as Espie dragged him away toward the lake. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to discuss your _relationship_ game with you," she spat.

As the two legacies walked away, Chel came out from her hiding place. She had followed the boys secretly.

"Blonde hair, green eyes, good with horses," she mused. Chel smiled. "I do believe I have a match for that."

She ran off toward the Poseidon Cabin, happier than she had been all day.

**ROUND FOUR**

**STATUS: FAIL**

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><p><em><strong>AN: Ooh, what could Chel be doing?**_

_**Next chapter is going to be a big surprise!**_


	6. Pause

_**Many of you suspected. Many of you guessed it, thanks to my Keys hint!**_

_**So, before I officially reveal who it is, here's another little teaser, with some surprising news about Tulio...**_

_**I own nothing you recognize as canon.**_

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><p><strong>Pause<strong>

"Okay," Espie said, rubbing her temples. "Tell me, honestly…_what exactly is going on with the Aphrodite Cabin and Tulio_?"

Mark twiddled his fingers and tried not to look Espie in the eye. "Um…well…my cabin has this whole 'Matchmaker' game thing they do. I don't participate."

"And what exactly is the point of this game?"

"Just to match up single campers," he explained. "Nothing sinister. It was meant to get people together. For real. No tricks or planned break-ups."

"And why Tulio?"

"Chel saw it as a challenge. I warned her not to."

"Yet here you are playing along," Espie spat. "Care to explain that?"

Mark grimaced and looked at his shoes. "It got pretty interesting, and Chel was getting desperate. I had to do the 'head-on' approach before she did something way more stupid than usual."

Espie sighed and put her face in her hand, like she was thinking, _What am I gonna do with this guy?_ **_(A/N: Sound familiar? Cookies to all who get the reference, even if I tweaked the movement)_**

"Look, bozo," she said. "The reason I'm talking to you about this now is because…you need to know something about Tulio and who he likes."

"He told me what his preference is," Mark said. "Blonde hair, green eyes, good with horses…"

Espie cocked an eyebrow. "…and?"

"And," he continued. "He's crushing on Lacy, right? Lacy Jackson, the legacy of Poseidon with blonde hair, green eyes, can talk with any horse-like entity?"

Espie hesitated. Then, she burst out laughing. "_Lacy_!? You're kidding, right? I like her, so does Tulio, but my brother doesn't like her as anything but a _friend_. She's definitely not his type!"

Mark's heart skipped a beat. "Then…who was he talking about?"

Espie looked around, like she was trying to make sure no one could hear them. Then, she leaned in close. She whispered, "I swear if you tell _anyone_ I will burn you alive."

"Got it," he squeaked.

She took a deep breath. "Tulio…doesn't like girls."

"As in…" Mark drawled. "He's not interested in a relationship, thinks they have cooties…?"

Espie facepalmed. "Hopeless. Didn't your grandmother teach you _anything_? Think, eel-brain!"

_Eel-brain? Was that some sort of crack on my electric heritage?_

"Uh," he said brilliantly.

Espie finally snapped. "Tulio's _gay_, you idiot!"

The world shattered for Mark. Then, it pulled itself back together, somehow fitting even better than before and making a better picture. "Gay…? He…but then…if…wha?"

Espie cocked an eyebrow. "Only I know about this," she said. "And now, so do you."

"But…" Mark tried to think. His Aphrodite senses were going in fast-forward against his will. He was trying to process Tulio's description to find a suitable crush candidate. "Who…who does he like?"

Espie frowned, then sighed. "He likes a certain Hermes camper that…that likes to spend time with the pegasi. He's even got a personal favorite that he named Altivo."

Mark knew _exactly_ who that was now. Blonde hair, green eyes—not as green as Lacy's, but much darker—and was good with horses. And he and Tulio had been friends since Day Care!

"Holy Jupiter," Mark breathed. "Does…does he like Tulio back?"

Espie shuffled her feet. "Tulio told me not to confront him. We don't know if he…runs that way, shall we say. Tulio's too scared to make a move or even ask."

"And you being the good sister won't do it for him," Mark guessed.

Espie nodded, her stare turning murderous.

Mark held up his hands in surrender. "Not blaming you. But…I do have an idea. You want Tulio to be happy. I want Chel to stop this nonsense with finding Tulio a date. If you'll let me, I have a way that will make this turn out right."

Espie raised an eyebrow. "You promise this will work out?"

"If he doesn't like Tulio _that way_ I promise I'll do whatever it takes to keep Chel from finding Tulio another suitor."

Espie sighed. "Fine. I'm listening."

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><p><em><strong>AN: I bet everyone knows, now :D**_

_**If you don't like that Tulio runs that way, sorry, but I'm not sorry.**_

_**Maybe one of my One-Shots will have Tulio confronting Leo about his sexuality, since he knows Leo bats for both teams :3 After the Keys, of course.**_


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